Once Dreaming
by Teletubbies Enthusiast
Summary: Blake was solely interested in trying lucid dreaming. Yet for the strangest reasons, her dreams led her to meet another version of her Yang- the darker, crueler Yang Brawnen and the deadliest team to haunt Beacon's walls. [Antithetical AU/Reverse AU] [Bumblebee!]


**Summary /** Blake was solely interested in trying lucid dreaming. Yet for the strangest reasons, her dreams led her to meet another version of her Yang- the darker, crueler Yang Brawnen and the deadliest team to haunt Beacon's walls. [Antithetical AU/Reverse AU]

 **A/N /** Why is the Black trailer so hard to rewrite for this AU? I took a break for shits and giggles and wrote this, and I love Yang in this AU. Any feedback is welcomed! Check out Antithetical too, which is slowly being written but I'll update at least once a month! While this is not what I'm probs gonna do for the main AU while speaking in terms of Blake's persona, it's an idea I actually really liked! I don't know how many chapters I'll write about this or the update time, but it might be every time I'm stomped on the actual AU.

 **[Part of the Antithetical AU]**

Once Dreaming

"Sleep, those little slices of death — how I loathe them."- Edgar Allen Poe

Blake Belladonna was known for being an avid reader.

Although fiction was a genre worth dabbing into (especially those _interesting_ romance ones that Ruby occasionally snuck from her bookshelf), nonfiction had always been the pinnacle of her interest. To her, nonfiction was realistic, and as of late, she had deserted the dreams of a golden childhood and entered a neverending world of knowledge.

After a tiring day of studying and training, she snuggled under Beacon's cheap sheets (according to Weiss, anyway) with a copy of Sunshine Fane's _How To Be Happy_. Her partner, Yang, had laughed when she caught her enjoying Fane's work.

"C'mon Blake, do you seriously have to read a book about being happy?" The blonde chirped. "I thought we were, like, your rays of sunshine!"

Like every other day, she had longed for a night of pure bliss and relaxation. She adored reading under her covers, sheltered from the rest of the world and its troubles. This night would not be an exception, especially after her favorite (well, only) pair of beaming siblings entered their dorm.

"Blake! You missed the book drive!" Ruby exclaimed, silver eyes ablaze with joy. "Don't worry, me and Yang snagged you some!"

"It's Yang and I, Ruby." Weiss corrected, the heiress proudly holding her head up.

"No, it was me and Yang. You weren't there." Her partner responded innocently, raising an eyebrow in confusion. She tossed a bag to Blake, filled with books of different kinds.

She had only stifled a laugh at the sight of the white-haired girl facepalming. Both sisters sat on their beds, Yang winking at the Faunus one last time. "I made sure Ruby got you your little depressing books."

The moment Team RWBY- scratch that, Team RWY- fell asleep and into a world of angelic dreams, the raven-haired girl brought out her little flashlight and dug in. She marveled at the wide selection Ruby and Yang brought for her- books of fiction, tales of romance and exquisite lands, stories of other worlds and different heroes. There was also two from the self-care aisle, one of managing stress and another about dreams.

Dreaming, a beautiful state of sleeping and opening your eyes to another world. Eagerly, she opened the caramel hardcover book and devoured the literature.

"Clear your mind. Instruct yourself to dream. Tell yourself to dream."

Lucid dreaming was an art she had always been curious to toy with. She had insomnia, so dreams were rare for her system to handle. If the few times she could sleep peacefully, perhaps she could control her mind to have great dreams, rather than the terrifying nightmares that cradled and hushes her cries.

Maybe she could try it, at least for once.

Closing her eyes, she thought of dreaming. She thought of sleep reaching out to her, the innocent taste of cake and pies in her mouth. She savored the book's wisdom, cotton clouds filling her vision. She pondered on pointless things, like the aromas of roses and freshly baked cookies.

She thought of a smiling Yang before she lost grip of her consciousness.

Her first dream was not a memory, but rather a delicate moment that would escape her fingertips.

Blake was in a car. It was old and white- one of those fancier models that were a convertible. Yang knew about cars, she did not.

She was sitting in the passenger's seat and was wearing a _ludicrous_ outfit. The sky was clear and blue, Azul making way for the shining sun blazing in its glory.

For some reason, she was laughing. Her hair swayed in the distance, the wind blessing her skin and her long white dress floating behind her. She remembered briefly picking at it, before the voice of a certain someone snapping her to reality.

Yang smiled, her brilliant smile sending her heart fluttering.

"C'mon," Her hands were on the wheel, lilac eyes wide in amusement. "Let's go on an adventure."

She didn't remember the dream, just the sheer feeling of having something pleasant to awaken to.

Her crush on Yang lingered for the next few days. It was like a shadow of puberty and love- a deadly combination that was threatening to make her have a breakdown. Yang was pretty, Yang was great, Yang was everything. But gosh, why now?

The Vytal Tournament was only a few months away. Their team had been training nonstop, and if she couldn't peel her eyes off the stunning blonde for a few seconds, Blake knew she'd face Weiss' fury. And the Schnee was a force to be reckoned with.

Aside from her love dilemma, she struggled with her insomnia more. Dreams had left her as soon as they came, and lucid dreaming had failed constantly. She wasn't considering it most of the time, only aching for two hours of rest at least.

Her second dream, though, was strange.

She hadn't thought of lucid dreaming in a while and sleep had visited her after an anxious day of tests. She had studied, heck even Ruby had studied with Yang, but the lack of sleep made it hard to function properly.

The instant she hit her bed, she only imagined of dreaming and it happened.

She woke with a start, sweat beads dripping from her forehead. The girl was chained, raven hair in a messed up bun and her cat ears exposed. She attempted to move them to ease her growing anxiety, though the horrific sensation of numbness made her realize it was impossible to do. Moving a pale hand to where her ears would have been, she found only a stump.

"What?" Blake panted, the beauty heaving as she slowly sat up. Her amber eyes searched and scanned her surroundings, confused to find herself in a jail cell.

There was another makeshift bed too, one where a sleeping body laid. She could see slightly in the darkness and made out a close figure of a girl, with a mane of hair and-

"Yang!"

The figure stirred. Coughing, they slowly sat up and helpless amber eyes met red.

"Blake? What is it?"

The Faunus heard the sounds of chains rattling, terror settling on her stomach. There was an ugly hole in her chest of worry and confusion and her lungs were threatening to explode.

"What happened?" She screeched. "What is this? My ears-! What happened? Where's Ruby and Weiss?"

Tears brimmed her vision, watching in agony as her partner attempted to get close to her. She couldn't, a grunt slipping past her chapped lips as she sighed in discontent.

"Was it a nightmare?"

"Huh?" At that moment, she realized she was dreaming. Letting a gasp of air, she grinned at the blonde.

"No, this is a dream." She continued. "Oh, thank the-"

"Blake...This isn't a dream."

"Yes, it is."

They stared for the longest time before the yellow-schemed girl shuddered. She brought her hands together, rubbing them for the sake of heat. Looking back at Blake, she shook her head.

"Go to sleep."

When she awoke, it was in a bed of sweat. The lights were on, Ruby and Yang rushing to her side. Weiss, on the other hand, let out a scream of annoyance before pushing herself off the bed and storming towards Blake.

"What is it? Are you okay?"

She couldn't speak. The memories of her nightmare made it worse, her hands reaching for her ears as she desperately grasped them. Feeling her feline features still present, she breathed in relief and nodded at her team.

"I am now. I'm sorry."

Her third dream is, oddly enough, quite beautiful. The conversation, though, was something a bit alarming for her to take in at once.

This time, she wasn't tired. It had been fun, having a dance and going with Sun and dancing with Yang. On one hand, she regretted not asking her partner out. Dances were silly, and she was hoping her first date with Yang to be rather serious.

"Why didn't you go with Neptune? He asked you out, Weiss." Yang questioned as they made their way to the dorm. Ruby tolled behind them, heels in her hand and her weapon in the other. The heiress pushed by her side, glancing awkwardly at Blake.

Weiss was the only one who knew of Blake's little crush. It was weird confiding in her, albeit the whole problem with the Faunus and her family name, but she learned to trust the girl. Although cold, she had a heart. Sometimes. Occasionally.

"Well, I wasn't really interested. I guess you could say my hair is the only straight thing about me." At that, she smiled, leaving a shocked Yang and a confused Ruby.

"Wait, what does that mean?" She cried. "Yang! Is that an adult joke?!"

Blake hated heels. God, she hated them more than Ruby. Taking them off and listening to the team leader's conversation about the mysterious figure she bravely fought off, her mind wandered to dreaming and flowers. Then of Yang and she blushed.

Hearing her crush's snoring, her bones wished to dream.

When she awoke in a field of flowers with a blonde by her side, she knew she was dreaming.

"This is a dream." Blake began, accidentally reaching for her cat ears for reassurance. They were there and she smiled. Gosh, that nightmare had traumatized her for life.

"Whatever you say, Blake." Yang turned, red eyes gleaming with happiness.

The dreamer frowned, raising an eyebrow. Why were her eyes crimson red? It was odd, Yang's eyes were only red when she was pissed off. Where was the shade of lilac she adored?

"Your eyes are red."

"My eyes are always red." She spoke as a matter of factly. "I'm Yang Brawnen, it runs in the family."

The dream ended abruptly with Yang shapeshifting into a yellow bird and a voice calling for her name. When she turned around, she only watched as the bird flew away from the fields of lilac daisies and white and red roses and into the baby blue world.

Upon awakening, she called for Yang in need of help. Her dream was registered completely, and Blake was perplexed by the change of the last name.

"Is there a Branwen in your family?" She inquired, noticing the way her face paled as she scratched her head awkwardly. "Sorry, I'm just curious 'ca-"

"My mom. And Uncle Qrow. That's their name." With that, she left with hands balled into fists.

The name Yang Branwen didn't leave her mind and that very night, she hoped to dream with the puzzling teenager.

Her fourth dream was a small exchange of words in her dorm, though it was not her dorm. It was a sad, little place that lacked the small signature of Team RWBY. There were no bunk beds, the furniture being aligned side by side and the bare walls coated in a neutral color. She was sad to note that even most of her books were gone, the shelves stripped from all but textbooks.

She wandered around for a bit. There were figures in the bed, all except two. For her sake, she did not dare check who was not asleep and left the premises.

There was a chest on a desk. Curiosity killed the cat and she opened it, a little book peeking out. It was a plain notebook belonging to Ruby Rose, ornamented in red. She figured it was handmade, all due to the way roses were carefully drawn with green leaves and a small tag beneath her name saying, "Red Like Roses."

"You shouldn't read that." The opinion sent chills down her spine, the Faunus spinning to greet the person.

Yang Branwen stood in all her glory, crimson eyes narrowed in distrust. A hand gestured to the notebook Blake was about to read. "It's not worth it. You shouldn't invade her privacy like that."

"I didn't mean to-"

"I don't care, Blake. If I messed with Weiss, you would murder me in my sleep." She paused, almost searching for an expression. Upon finding one of confusion, she continued. "Be glad Ruby's gone for the night."

"Where did she go?"

"Who knows anymore."

She shifted uncomfortably, biting her bottom lip. She twirled her raven locks, avoiding the Branwen's cold gaze.

"Listen," she felt Yang's hand on her shoulder. "I know you're not...from this world."

"What?"

Before she could register the statement, the blonde beat her to it and gestured to- herself sleeping? The figure that was supposedly her was laying in bed, snoring softly. In her heart, she knew that was her.

"Yeah. My Blake is asleep."

"And my Yang has lilac eyes and goes by Xiao Long."

There was no reaction, only silence. Blake embraced it, sure that her words had carried an impact towards the brawler. Raindrops splattered against the roof, trees striking the window and leaves raging in the breeze.

"Well, I wish that Yang had been me."

The morning she arose and the sunlight kissed her delicate skin, Blake knew there was something fatally wrong in the works. For once, she hoped to hide it from her team- especially Yang.

Yet, who would believe a series of dreams?

But by then, it had been too late. Weiss was onto her and when the festivities of the tournament started to roll in, she decided to pester her once more. When the eccentric duo of Rose-Xiao Long siblings left to meet up with their Uncle somewhere, the heiress gently tapped her shoulder and cleared her throat.

"Ahem. Blake, I want to talk."

They were in their dorm- her team RWBY's dorm. Weiss set down a cup of green tea. Lately, they both bonded over exploring different coffees and teas, anything that spiked up their energy for battle. Humorously, Blake had gifted her pal a book over diet plans and power. As a result, she found a way to torture Ruby and make her eat _healthy_ sweets.

"Hm?" She sipped the tea and nodded wearily, already aware of what the conversation would consist of.

"You've been acting strangely. Like, beyond weird." Weiss paused. "What's up?"

Her confidence faltered. Blake understood what she meant- she had noted that she had been a little distant with her team. The times they did not train, she would wander off to research more about lucid dreaming. Then she learned what group dreaming meant and she drowned in the small research over the topic.

"I like Yang. That's it."

That would have been convincing if she had been focusing on Yang. Truth was, she couldn't help but picture a Yang Branwen instead.

Why? She did not know.

"It's not."

They stared in hushness as the heiress drank her tea, nodding. Putting the drink aside, her hand intertwined with Blake's.

"I'm here for you. I want to help." Blue eyes were filled with warmth- so warm the Faunus wanted to fall into them. "Please, I'm here for you."

Her meek response was enough for Weiss, who smiled and dusted off her skirt. She excused herself for she had to attend a meeting with her sister, Winter. Blake didn't mind being alone, deciding to invest time in a little nap.

Her fifth dream explained things, maybe not all, but mostly enough to make her happy.

"So, who are you?"

Blake was in the other RWBY's dorm again. She was sitting with Yang outside the dorm, reassured by the fact that no one could see or hear them. The girl had claimed it, saying she tried to call for Ruby and nothing happened. For no reason other than blind trust, Blake believed it.

"I'm Yang Branwen." She traced her initials on the green carpet. "Partners of Blake Belladonna and member of Team RWBY."

"My name's Blake Belladonna, partners with Yang Xiao Long and member of Team RWBY."

As if catching on to the round of explanations, Yang opened her mouth to speak.

"I was raised by my mother and our tribe. I'm their next leader, and I came to Beacon to sharpen my skills." The last part seemed like a lie, though the Faunus let it slip. It would be worthless to question her now. "I'm siblings with Ruby Rose, but I barely met her a while ago."

"I guess..." Blake sighed. "It's complicated. I have parents, obviously. My dad's the chief of Menagerie. I was a member of the White Fang at some point."

At the last sentence, Yang let out a low whistle.

"Oh, my Kitty sure as hell would have never joined the White Fang!"

Over time, their talk went from strangers introducing to best friends that hadn't seen each other in months speaking of their other friends. It was as if they were catching up with each other's lives.

Blake learned that, in this weird world of dreams, Yang was rather more like herself. She enjoyed reading and silence and was outspoken and reserved. In fact, she was surprised to find out that the other Blake was mostly like her Yang- a loud, caring girl who was the life of the party and would rather act before being rational.

"My Blake doesn't care about protests. She's a Faunus, sure, but she thinks it's a waste of time and just accepts her role in society. She gets mad at discrimination, but not enough to be...you, I guess."

"That's terrible! Then again, my Yang isn't...you."

"Your Weiss is cold and a bit spoiled-"

"And your Weiss is warmth itself."

"You have a Ruby who is loving and sweet and innocent-"

"But your Ruby is mature and scares you?"

It became abruptly quiet. Yang nodded, bringing her knees towards her as a way to shield herself from the sudden cold. A damaged A.C. was probably the cause of that. They were common in Blake's world, too. Beacon's budget wasn't so grand, much to her disappointment.

"If we're both reserved, then why are we speaking of this?" The blonde inquired, glancing at the cat Faunus.

"Because of blind trust. I trust someone who's most like me."

"Oh, I'm nowhere like you. But I think it's because I look like Yang and I'm Yang, just not your Yang." She shook her head. "Trust me, I am nothing like your Yang."

The dream ended the second her alarm blared. Stirring, cat-like eyes slid open as she pushed herself off the bed. She stretched, yawning.

There was no surprise in finding Ruby up and ready. The team leader was a morning person, and she was dressed neatly in her Beacon uniform. Weiss was grumbling and muttering as she searched for her missing brush, and Yang was still asleep. Unlike the Red and White of their team, Yellow preferred to take only five minutes of her day to get dressed. The other minutes were wasted in sleep, something Blake was jealous of.

She got ready quickly, opening her mini closet where her bows were neatly aligned. She had sorted them by mood and picked one that represented her neutral mood.

"Oh, you dunce! What do you mean our class was rescheduled for five minutes earlier?"

Glancing up, she watched as Ruby held her hands up in defense.

"I didn't know! Plus you have your scroll with class notifications! Don't blame this on me!"

Still not finding her brush, the heiress frowned and pushed her hair into a bun. Grabbing Ruby, she said goodbye to Blake and a half-asleep Yang.

Monday and Wednesday classes were different for the team. While Ruby and Weiss had a physical class over survival, Blake and Yang dealt with a more artistic class.

"Blakeee~! Come here!" Yang was awake, stifling a yawn and she rose from her bed. Eagerly, she raised both hands and greeted Blake with a smile.

"What is it, Yang?"

"Well, I was thinking maybe we should go out together!"

The Faunus's eyes widened, and she swore they were about to pop off her face with a _Boing!_ Her face was a red shade now, nodding awkwardly as she clasped her hands to avoid any fidgeting.

"I mean, we could."

"Don't be so hesitant, Ruby and Weiss are busy working on a partner project anyway. We're both good when it comes to missing work, and I thought maybe we could go to this bookstore slash cafe!"

"I..." She grinned. "I'd like that."

Yang's face lit up, the blonde pulling her partner into a hug.

"Oh, and this _is_ a date."

Her sixth dream took place before her date with Yang.

The news of their agreement to go out reached Weiss, who was beyond pleased yet was rather quiet about it to avoid embarrassing the Faunus. Blake had the gut feeling she was responsible for the blonde's confidence in asking to begin with. The younger of the four, on the other hand, was squealing about the news, gossipping to team JNPR about the new couple.

They weren't dating. It was just a date. Besides, Yang wasn't acting like a girlfriend, but a friend. So really, they were not a couple.

She wondered if Yang Branwen liked the other Blake, though that would be resolved within her new dream.

"It's nice seeing you again." The other Yang had started their talk this time, greeting her with a small wave. Fatigue was written over her face, and Blake couldn't help but note her busted lip.

"What happened?"

Yang looked hesitant to speak. Sighing, she gently tugged at her blond hair.

"Fight with Ruby. It's nothing."

"You...You fight with Ruby?" Blake was shocked at the statement. The other Ruby rarely practiced physical fights with Yang, much less had actual verbal arguments. And this, a gut feeling told her, was an actual fight for both. Yang looked tired and distant, almost as if she just wanted to push Blake away. For a second, she wondered if that's how Yang felt at times.

"Practice. It's nothing." Sighing, she sat on her bed and patted the space next to her. "Sit."

Blake sat next to her, glancing at her partner with sincere concern. "Alright, if you say so..."

The Branwen nodded, frowning in deep thought. Her crimson eyes glinted red, occasionally flickering to a lilac shade. Was the lilac signaling her calm? Maybe, and she found that strangely amusing. Pulling her knees up and wrapping an arm around them, she spoke up. "So, how's it going?"

"Good. Tiring. A little bit of both. You?"

"Not much of a difference. Glynda's been wary of us lately." The Faunus snickered. "Something about someone stealing chocolate chips and milk at night. Their budget isn't so big, I guess."

"Ah, Ozpin's always been cheap from what my mother said." Yang looked at her with a hint of warmth now. "How's your team?"

"Great. In fact, I got a date with my Yang."

Yang let out a low whistle, running fingers through her blonde mane. "She asked you out?"

"Yes."

There was a moment of silence. They watched intently as...Ruby? Yeah, Ruby shifted on her bed and muttered something. It was hard to believe her Ruby could ever harm Yang. Gosh, if that ever happened, she knew Yang would be bawling for days and the two sisters ould eventually make up.

"Blake asked me out today."

That was not a surprise. She didn't see Yang asking Blake out, but she did see Blake inquiring her about meeting up. After all, her Yang had asked her out, so she could easily draw that conclusion. Closing her amber eyes, her ears twitched briefly.

"Ah."

The duo sat quietly, both looking at Ruby Rose as she slept calmly. It was odd to Blake to realize that her Ruby slept all over the place, occasionally even having her feet planted on her pillow or hanging her head off the bed. This Ruby was calm, peaceful, and in a more uniform-like state.

 _"She's asleep. It's not that deep."_

There was something wrong with this world, she knew. Something wrong, bad, negative. And for now, looking at the mysterious figure of Yang Branwen, she became alarmingly aware of the fact that she was hiding something. But what?

And soon, she came to the morbid conclusion, that she would find out through these dreams and not be able to do a single thing.


End file.
